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February, 2007
Vol. 11, Issue 1
Multicultural
Health
Communication
Awards for
2007
If you have produced a pamphlet, flyer,
brochure, patient information, sign or
symbol, educational or promotional
material in a language other than
English (multilingual health information)
between 1 July 2005 and 31 December
2006, you’re invited to enter the
Multicultural Health Communication
Awards for 2007.
Entries will be judged on the
effectiveness of the resources, quality
of translations and potential benefits
for non-English speakers in NSW.
The Multicultural Health Communication
Awards were established to recognise
contributions to multilingual health
resources, by the staff of NSW Health
and of NGOs who produce multilingual
health resources.
For more information and an entry kit
call (02) 9816 0347,
Applications need to reach us by 30th
April, 2007.
or visit
www.mhcs.health.nsw.gov.au
New Systems Manager for MHCS
Prithivarajah Manicakarajah, better known as ‘Rajan’, is
our new Systems Manager – and brings a wealth of IT
expertise to MHCS.
Rajan, who began working with SEH as a Help Desk
Support Officer, has been with SESIAHS as IT Manager
for Sydney Hospital for the last six years. A Microsoft
certified system engineer, he holds certification in
website design, has a Diploma in Computer Technology
and an Advanced Diploma of Information Technology
(E-Security).
.
Table of contents:
Multicultural Communication
Awards 2007
P1
New Staff member
P1
National Multicultural
Marketing Awards
P2
Japanese Delegation
P2
Family Matters resources
P2
News from M’cultural Health
Communications Network P3
Photovoice and Action
Conversations
P4
Critical Link 5
P4
New articles on Website
P4
NSW MHC Bldg 11 Gladesville Hospital, Victoria Rd, Gladesville. Tel (02) 9816 0347 Fax (02) 9816 0302
Postal address: NSW MHCS, Bldg 11, Gladesville Hospital, P.O. Box 58, Gladesville NSW 2111
MHCS wins top prize at the 2006 National Multicultural Marketing Awards.
Multicultural Communication’s national advertising campaign to raise awareness of breast cancer was one of
two winning campaigns targeting CALD communities at the Multicultural Marketing Awards announced in
November last year.
•
Multicultural Health Communication won the Advertising Award for their campaign using images
and testimonials from five women from Arabic, Chinese, Greek, Italian and Vietnamese
backgrounds who had had breast cancer detected in the early stages. The breast cancer
awareness campaign, funded and initiated by the National Breast Cancer Centre (NBCC), used the
headline, ‘I acted early; I survived’.
•
Sydney South West Area Health Service won the Government Award with their campaign
Ma’feesh cigara men gheir khosara (‘there is no cigarette without loss’). The campaign targeted
Arabic-speakers, reminding male smokers that their families don’t want to watch them die young, or
become disabled as a result of smoking.
The National Multicultural Marketing Awards are presented by the Community Relations Commission to
highlight examples of the most effective and creative use of multicultural marketing strategies. For full
stories on the awards visit:
http://www.crc.nsw.gov.au/press/2006/mma06_govt.htm
http://www.crc.nsw.gov.au/press/2006/mma06_advertising.htm
Information on the award winning projects:
South-West Area Health Service - Angela Balafas on 9515 9083 or 0412 135 423
NSW Multicultural Health Communication Service - Michael Camit on 9816 0305
Teaching best practice in multicultural communication to Japanese delegation
In February we played host to a Japanese delegation keen to know more about promoting good health to
CALD communities. With the help of an interpreter, they learned how and why our service was established
and the value of our multilingual resources to health workers and their clients.
Japan now needs to implement policies and measures to meet the demands of settlers from other countries
with limited knowledge of Japanese. As a result, a study tour was organised by the Council of Recognised
Local International Exchange Associations to help Japanese organisations learn more about programs and
policies targeting immigrant populations in Australia.
While the situations in Japan and Australia are different, there are many similarities. Japanese authorities
believe they can benefit by learning more about Australian programs, including how they’re funded and
implemented and, where relevant, apply the knowledge to their own programs.
Through this study tour, the delegation will learn new ways of improving existing programs to support foreign
residents in Japan. These programs include multilingual consultation, information services, Japanese
language classes, medical interpreting and housing support.
Family Matters - Drug education booklet for families available in 15 languages
The NSW Government recently released a new version of the booklet Family Matters: how to approach drug
issues with your children in English and 15 languages - Arabic, Bosnian, Chinese, Croatian, Khmer, Korean,
Lao, Macedonian, Punjabi, Russian, Serbian, Spanish, Thai, Turkish and Vietnamese.
People who speak languages other than English can contact their own community organisations to order
booklets in the relevant language – see the table below.
Family Matters is designed to help parents answer questions when talking to their children about drugs. The
booklet, originally produced in 2002, has been updated following consultations with parents and with
services working with families. It includes information about the risks of drug and alcohol abuse, specific
drugs (cannabis, ecstasy and amphetamines), tips for talking with your family about drugs, and contact
details for services offering further information and help.
Family Matters is available online at www.druginfo.nsw.gov.au and www.mhcs.health.nsw.gov.au, from
community and health services, Community Drug Action Teams, local libraries and from community
organisations. To order copies, e-mail contact and delivery details and the quantity and languages required
to [email protected] or telephone 9424 5893.
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LANGUAGE
ORGANISATION
TELEPHONE
NUMBER
ARABIC
Arab Council Australia
02 9709 4333
BOSNIAN
Bosnian Information Welfare Centre
02 9749 9177
CHINESE
Australian Chinese Community Association of NSW Inc. (ACCA)
02 9412 3488
CROATIAN
Croatian Australian Community Council NSW
02 9850 7040
KHMER
Cambodian-Australian Welfare Council of NSW
02 8786 2581
KOREAN
Korean Society of Sydney
02 9798 8800
LAO
Lao Community Advancement (NSW) Co-operative Limited
02 9724 1951
MACEDONIAN
Macedonian Australian Welfare Association of Sydney Inc.
02 9597 5455
PUNJABI
Punjabi Welfare & Cultural Association
0417 271 147
RUSSIAN
Russian Ethnic Community Council of NSW
02 9745 4244
SERBIAN
Serbian Orthodox Welfare Association
02 9727 9817
SPANISH
NSW Spanish and Latin-American Association for Social
Assistance (SLASA)
02 9724 2220
THAI
Thai Welfare Association Inc.
02 9264 3166
TURKISH
Turkish Welfare Association Inc.
02 9649 7502
VIETNAMESE
Vietnamese Women’s Association of NSW
02 8786 2601
02 9723 2022
The power of radio to reach ethnic communities
Because it’s accessible and language-friendly, radio is popular among non-English speaking communities –
communities which have been involved in community broadcasting since the early 70s in Australia,
according to Bruce Frances, Executive Officer of the National Ethnic and Multicultural Broadcasters Council,
writing on the Community Broadcasting Association of Australia website in March 2000.
They recognise community radio as an accessible, inexpensive way of communicating and building
supportive communities. Ethnic broadcasting provides a way of recognising and understanding the diversity
of cultural, ethnic and linguistic backgrounds in Australia.
Multicultural Health Communication knows the power of radio and regularly uses ethnic broadcasting to
disseminate important health information to non-English speakers. We provide helpful tips on health issues
on the SBS Radio Filipino Language Program with Michael Camit, our Communication Officer, and Jess
Helaratne, MHCS Project Officer and SBS Radio Broadcaster, both discussing health topics from the MHCS
website in the Filipino language.
To listen to some of the topics discussed by Michael and Jess on the SBS Filipino Program, please click on:
http://www9.sbs.com.au/radio/language.php?news=lifestyle&language=Filipino
Ethnic broadcasting is an important reflection of the cultural diversity of this nation – that’s why MHCS
continues to work with community radio broadcasters to share essential information about health issues and
health services to people who speak languages other than English.
Need free images to promote health issues? Check out Photoshare
Those of us working in health communication, whether in English or languages other than English, are always
looking for creative ways to save money. The Health Communication Network (http://www.m-mc.org/hcmn)
has alerted us to a great way to economise on images – visit Photoshare at http://www.photoshare.org.
Photoshare is a service of the INFO Project (The Information and Knowledge for Optimal Health Project)
based at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health in the US. It helps international non-profit
organisations communicate health and development issues through photography. Photoshare welcomes you
to browse their collection, request images for non-profit educational use, and learn more about development
photography. The online photo database currently contains more than 10,000 catalogued images shared by
colleagues around the world for documentary use.
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PHOTOVOICE AND ACTION CONVERSATIONS
Two innovative tools for working with culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD)
communities
During Multicultural Health Week last year, Multicultural Health Communication and the Centre for Popular
Education piloted three workshops for health and community workers to introduce two new communication
and community development tools: Photovoice and Action Conversations. Dr, Tony Webb, formerly a Visiting
Research Fellow of the Centre for Popular Education at UTS, ran the workshops.
Action Conversations – asks strategic questions
as a ‘tool’ for developing community and social
action projects and facilitating the evaluation of
these projects
Photo Voice is a community tool that provides
(disposable) cameras to members of a particular
community and invites them to capture images that
represent how they see their world.
The workshops explore difficulties that most
concerned community volunteers and paid
workers face in their efforts to engage a broader
section of the community in action on many social
issues.
Photo-Voice is a tool with a significant history in
assisting marginalised groups and minority
communities to allow the wider community to see and
hear the issues that concern them - through the eyes
and in the voices of those affected by these issues.
Around 60 people from a variety of workplaces took part, and the participants agreed the tools were very
useful, particularly with CALD groups. As a result of the workshops, a network has been formed to sustain
interest in Photo Voice and Action Conversations and raise awareness to other health and community
workers through a website and possibly a conference this year.
To find out more, contact Michaela Zappia from Youthsafe email: [email protected] or phone
02 9809 4615 or Dr. Tony Webb on email: [email protected], phone 0418 212 632.
Critical Link 5
Fifth International Conference of Critical Link
11-15 April 2007 • Crowne Plaza Hotel, Parramatta
Quality Interpreting: Who’s Responsible?
Highly competent interpreters are indispensable for those who speak limited English, or are deaf, and those
needing to communicate with them. But responsibility for the quality of the interpreted encounter is shared
between the interpreter and all parties who work with them, whether educators, researchers, policy-makers,
lawyers, professionals in the medical, allied health or other fields.
Experts from Australia and from overseas will be examining this crucial question at Critical Link 5, the
international conference on interpreting in the community.
Early Bird Registrations are now open. Please go to www.criticallink2007.com to register or
contact ICMS Australasia, telephone +61 2 9254 5000 or email [email protected]
New articles on our website since last issue
Publication No. & Title
SWS - 7930
School canteen parent information
Summary
Information on healthy diets for
school kids
Languages
Arabic, Chinese, English,
Farsi, Filipino, Samoan,
Tongan, Turkish
AHS - 7925
Quitting is hard, but you can do it:, tips
to help you stop smoking
Quitting is hard, but you can do
it: tips to help you stop smoking
Chinese, English
Deadline for next
edition:
27th April, 2007
4
Polyglot is published by NSW Multicultural Health Communication. Articles for
inclusion in the next issue can be sent to Cecilia George, NSWMHCS, PO Box 58,
Gladesville, NSW 2111, or email: [email protected].